Minimally invasive surgery, such as laparoscopic surgery, has become the surgical technique of choice in many situations. In general, minimally invasive surgery is accomplished using small incisions. Minimally invasive surgery often involves the use of specialized equipment and techniques, such as miniature cameras with microscopes, tiny fiber-optic flashlights and high definition monitors. Benefits observed from the use of minimally invasive surgery include minimized pain, faster recovery, and elimination of potential complications associated with traditional surgical techniques.
Minimally invasive surgical procedures can be used in a number of situations including cardiovascular surgery, colon and rectal surgery, gastroenterologic, gynecological surgery, neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery, otorhinolaryngology (ear, nose and throat) surgery, thoracic surgery, urological surgery, and vascular surgery.
A particular type of minimally invasive surgery is laparoscopic surgery. Laparoscopic surgery involves the performance of surgical procedures with the assistance of a video camera and several thin instruments. The use of the camera allows the surgeon to sees images of the patient's body during surgery. During the surgical procedure, small incisions of up to half an inch are made and plastic tubes called ports are placed through these incisions. The camera and the instruments are then introduced through the ports which allow access to the inside of the patient. Laparoscopic surgery is used to perform numerous surgeries such as adrenalectomies, appendectomies, treatment for bowel tumors, lymph node biopsys, gallbladder surgery, hernia repair, treatment for stomach tumors, splenectomies, bariatric surgery, removal of fibroids, removal of benign ovarian cysts, treatment of pelvic endometriosis, fundoplication for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), myotomy for achalasia, nephrectomies, partial nephrectomies, donor nephrectomies, pyeloplasties, and opening of cysts.
The small incisions made during the minimally invasive surgeries can be closed by traditional techniques, such as the introduction of sutures or staples to close the incision wounds. More recently, the use of surgical adhesives has gained favor in closing the incisions. These adhesives are liquid in nature and, upon contact with surface skin proteins and moisture, will polymerize and the resulting polymer bonds strongly to the skin. When applied over apposed skin sections of a wound, the adhesives polymerize and join these apposed skin sections to result in closure of the wound. The adhesives can be formulated to include antimicrobial agents to aid in healing of the wound. The adhesive need not be removed from the wound because it will naturally fall away from the wound as the skin renews itself.
Many different applicators for adhesives have been developed. However, the majority of these applicators do not address the need for a versatile applicator capable of effectively closing and sealing a wound. U.S. Pat. No. 7,094,250, commonly assigned to the assignee of the instant application and incorporated herein by reference, describes an applicator capable of effectively closing, sealing, and dressing a wound using medical adhesive. The present application describes an improvement to the applicator described in this publication.